, 1887-02-18
THE SUMAC INDUSTRY.
ACCOUNT OF A CORRESPONDENT
FROM THE ISLAND OF SICILY.

'fhON' 80
Methods Of Cultivation in the Great
Summc MISUNDERSTANDING the Crop
of Leav---on the ThreshinE Floor.
Virginia's Product.
Sicilinn sumac stands first in all the
markets of the world. This l. due tn. the
great care bestowed upon its gathering
and curing. The sninnc i, II native of
Africa and Syria. For centuries il has
been grown in sicily, but ii is not in
%digcnous 10 that island, where its seed
seldom comes TO perfection, and il Is pro-
pagai-d by sprouts and suckers. In
Africa the seed, which Is perfect, is used
MS II condiment. The sumac belongs to
the genus Rhus-tnrpentlne family.
There ARE many "arietics Of this shrub,
some OF which nre used In tanning, others
In dycing and Others again in medicine.
The Rhua Corinrin lsnOwn here ~ The
comimOn suinac) Is generally cultivated ia
sicily. Palermo aud irtpnni are the
great atnlnc districts. II il also grown
ia The province Of C%atinnh, but is ut present
seldom to he met with in the province Of
Messina. IT grows wild in certain sec
tons, where 1t propagates by suckers.
The cultivated suinuc is very bushy. Tn
der favorable conditions of soil and eli
mate il grows from nine to twelve feet
high, but as it is annually topped it does
not attain "A height greater thnn three
fcet-onc years growth of wood. 1t
thrives where the orange tree and cotton
plant nave their home. 1t is also well
adapted to u temperate climate. A warm,
calcnreo-siliceous porous soil suits it best.
METHODS OF CULTIVATION.
The sumac is worked I'm December or
January. The suckers are then removed
from the old plnnts and set out IN the
grove. When the leaves sell for / 1l2
cents per pound suckers bring l cent
apiece. Suckers should be straight, one
half inches in diameter, fifteen inches high
and well supplied with hbrous roots.
They nre set out in parallel rows, running
with the slope of the land-5,000 to the
acre, and trimmed down to within six
inches of the ground. They nro cult
waited by hand, u long, broad ~grubbing hoe
(zappal being used. The earth is drawn
up 10 the plants that the rain may run of.
During the first year-from December to
September-the sumac Is worked seven
times; In December, February and April,
deep grubbings; in May the earth is lev
cled, and three light workings follow be-
tween June and September. During the
second and subsequent years it Is worked
in December and the earth is le-e'"a In
March. heavy rains seldom occurring in
Sicily during the spring. The third and
last working Is in May. At three years
thu sumac is full grown. Its innumer-
able suckers must then be removed or they
will enfeeble the plant.
The first year the sumac bears but few
leaves, which mature late, are light, and
have neither the color nor the aroma of
those of the adult shrub. During August
and September the large leaves are
gathered, and the tender ones, on the tips
of the branches, are left until they are
mature in October. In January the plants
are cut down to u height of six Inches.
Plants of two years and over are either
topped and trimmed before their leaves
are gathered Ia considerable saving OF
labor, hut by topping the shrubs in mid.
summer their longevity and productive
ness are diminishedl, or stripped of their
leaves in May, June, August or Septem-
Der, and pruned in December or January
following. Men only are employed for
pruning. As each man gathers an arm
full of branches or twigs, he piles them ON
the ground In rows, In such n manner rs
to expose as little surface ms possible 10
the sum-, which bleaches and scorches the
leaves, diminishing their market value.
The rows are run in the direction of the
u ~ ~ lb' w aNOlu ibo' ~ Ait
scattering Of the leaves. Should the
branches and twigs be exposed toa shower
while lying on the ground their leaves
suffer greatly, both in quality and weight.
Twenty days after the main harvesting
the suckers are, in turn, stripped of their
leaves. Women and children gather the
leaves.
On THE THRAsHISG FLOOR.
After n few days of dry, warm weather
the crop is carried to the thra shing floor,
and the leaves are whipped off with the
old fashioned Hail and baled. The twigs
are tied in bundles and sold for firewood.
When the leaves are stripped by hand
they are ut once carried to the storehouse
and turned over three or four times n day
with pitchforks, to prevent overhenting
and fermentation These leaves are thus
cured in four or five days, baled and sent
to the mills TO be ground.
The price OF snmac depends upon the
color of the leaves, which should be bright
green when put upon the market. Cured
leaves from II one-year-old push are of u
dull green color; those of the September
gathering are blackish in hue. Care is
taken not to mix the different varieties.
Four qualities of sumac are quoted ON thf
market; First quality, whole lenfayens J.
from trash, shipped in bales; second quail
ity, thrashed sumac; third quality, leaves
from one-year-old shrubs; fourth quality,
leaves of September gathering.
The sumac grows spontaneously in VA.
rious sections OF the United States on-poor,
rough and abandoned lands and hillsides.
1t has never been subjected to cultivation,
though there appears no reason why it
may not be. In Virginia the price of the
raw product, MS delivered to the mills,
varies with different seasons and condi
tions all the way from twenty-five cents
to sev~enty-five cents per 100 pounds,
which is very much less than what Sicilian
sumac brings in its home market. The
duty on ground sumac entering the United
States is three-tenths Of one cent per
pound.-San Francisco Chronicle.